Order-holder



r TU D L A N 0 D '0 M S (No Model.)

ORDER HOLDER.

No. 487,960. Patented Dec. '13, 1892.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES S. MCDONALD, JZR, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

ORDER-HOLDER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 487,960, dated December 13, 1892.

Application filed August 3, 1891.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMEs S. MCDONALD,

J12, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city of Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Order- Holders, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in order-holders in which orders or other sheets of paper have been securely but temporarily held by means of a clasp of spring metal sub-' stantially U-shaped in cross-section, sprung over upon the back of the covers of a binder to give said back a spring-clampingeifect upon and so as to hold the sheets in a temporarilybound condition between said covers. .The prior construction above referred to is objectionable for several reasons, the principal objections, however, being the scratching of desks by the clasp and the mutilation of papers by the necessarily somewhat sharp edges of the same and that it disfigures the binder to such an extent as to make such binders undesirable, and besides the clasp is subject to accidental detachment, producing a disarrangement and scattering of the sheets.

The object of my invention is to secure all of the advantages and avoid all of the objections common to the use of the clasps above referred to and at the same time materially and substantially strengthen and rendermore durable the back of the covers of a binder, by the same means providing for the spring-jaw clamping efiect of the back.

A still further object is to provide a simple and efiective means whereby the spring-actuating clampingdevice for the back of abinder is effectually prevented from accidental detachment therefrom.

These objects are attained by the devices illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 illustrates in perspective in a closed position an order-holder embodying my in vention; Fig. 2, an end elevation of the same, showing the covers in position for releasing or inserting orders in between the. clampingjaws; Fig. 3, a similar view with the covers closed and more particularly showing the position of the'bound orders therein; Fig. 4, a

Serial No. 401,586. (No model.)

perspective view of the clasps furnishing the power for holding the orders.

Sim ilarletters of reference indicate the same partsin the several figures of the drawings.

The cover consists of stiff boards A B or other suitable material, bound at one end or edge by the foldable back 0 of the usual construction common to backs of this class.

The-back O, in order that it may exert a force suflicient to clamp and hold the orders or other sheets, has inserted therein a clasp D, preferably of spring metal, the body of which clasp preferably conforming, substantially, to the inner face or Wall of said back both as to width and length, so that said clasp forms a fac ng and strengthening-support for the entire back in addition to its other function, now to be described. The clasp D, as before stated, preferably consists of spring metal, which is bound over upon itself, as more clearly shown in Fig. 4, and so formed that both ends of each of its three edges, respectively, have projecting therefrom lips E E and F F of such length that they may be folded across the edge of and down upon the face of the back in such manner that after the clasp is inserted in the back and bound down, as described, the lips will securely lock it in position against accidental detachment, while at the same time serving to hold the back tightly upon the clasp, and thereby afford a substantial support and strengthening device for the back.

I have found by practice that in order to hold the stub ends G of the leaves of the book by the spring force alone of the clasp, which is substantially U-shaped, a very powerful spring is required if the sides of the clasp be straight or uniformly curved throughout their length; but by crimping or corrugating the sides of the clasp longitudinally, as shown in the drawings, so that the corrugations of one side thereof fit into the corrugations of the other side, a com paratively-weak spring may be employed, because the stub ends of the leaves instead of being held in a straight smooth condition are themselves erimped or corrugated between the sides of the clasp corresponding therewith, and such bending or irregularity of the clamping-surface eifectually prevents the slipping of the leaves from between the sides of the clamp without necessitating undue power of the spring, which would prove objectionable to the use of the device.

For .clearness of illustration and description the lips E and F are shown to lie upon the outer surface of the back; but in practice it is proposed that these lips shall lie under the cloth or other cover thereof or be projected into the layers of the more or less thick material of which such backs are usually composed. However, one advantage of the construction and-arrangement of my clasp is that in some instances it enables the use of'a back devoid of the usual stifiening material, for by the form and arrangement of the clasp it itself constitutes the necessary stiffening for the back, which may therefore consist only of the cloth, leather, or other facing uniting the back with and forming the covering for the stiffening-boards of the cover.

Owing to the form of my clasp and its connection with the back of the cover, it may be very cheaply or conveniently stamped or cut out of sheet metal, and it requires no especial skill to join the clasp to the back, as has been described, and such clasp when used as preferred-that is to say, with the lips concealed within the back or under the covering thereofnot only furnishes a very desirable and convenient means for actuating the back to clamp and hold the orders or other sheets, but does so without causing the holder to present an unusual or undesirable appearance, while at the same time it materially increases the durability of the back.

In conclusion it may be observed that although it is preferred to have the clasp of substantially the same dimensions as the back, so as to form the inner facing of the back, as illustrated in the drawings, it would be no departure from the spirit of my invention to employ a series of such clasps at intervals of the length of the back and secure each of said clasps thereto by suitable fastening devicessuch as rivetsnext their free ends.

Having described my invention, what I desire to claim and secure by Letters Patent is In an order-holder, the combination, with the covers and the back thereof, of a U shaped clasp composed of springv metal, secured to the inner surface of the back, the sides of which clasp are corrugated longitudinally, substantially as described.

JAMES S. MoDONALD, J R.

Witnesses:

R. O. OMOHUNDRO, ARTHUR F; DURAND. 

